Sisodia takes Delhi poll baton with padayatra from August 14 to counter BJP

New Delhi: Out of jail on bail, AAP No 2 Manish Sisodia is taking the party’s baton for the Delhi Assembly elections early next year in the absence of jailed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, starting with a ‘padayatra’ from Wednesday across the capital to “expose” the BJP.

Following a meeting with senior leaders on Sunday, Sisodia held deliberations with Delhi MLAs on Monday to finetune the strategy for the elections during which the AAP will be seeking a consecutive fourth victory since 2013. He will also be holding a meeting with councillors on Tuesday.

Kejriwal’s wife Sunita also attended the meeting with MLAs along with senior leaders. Sisodia also separately met party volunteers in his constituency.

AAP will be highlighting the 17-month incarceration of Sisodia, who is credited with taking steps to improve the education sector in the national capital. A close Kejriwal associate, Sisodia will also highlight how injustice is meted out to Kejriwal allegedly by the BJP.

The presence of the most experienced leader in the party, who managed party and government affairs for Kejriwal, would enthuse cadre at a time the morale is down due to a series of political and legal setbacks, including the inability to get bail for Kejriwal and the recent Supreme Court order over the nomination of ten aldermen to the municipal corporation.

AAP believes Sisodia would be able to convince people that the party is not responsible for the “administrative paralysis” in the capital due to the incarceration of Kejriwal. In the recent past, the AAP government and L-G V K Saxena were at loggerheads over a variety of issues, including on tackling waterlogging and health sector related issues.

Another confrontation is over the demand of allowing minister Atishi to hoist tricolour at the Independence Day celebrations.